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Elawa Today
In the late 1980s, The City of Lake Forest and the Lake
County Forest Preserve purchased the
450-acre Middlefork
Savanna Forest Preserve. Lake Forest Open Lands then
purchased an additional 195-acre block of land in 1998,
including the 16-acre Elawa Farm site, which has been
designated as its Middlefork Farm Nature Preserve.
Through a unique collaborative arrangement, Open Lands
assembled partners to ensure that the majority of the
nearly 700 acres would remain open, public space. The
City of Lake Forest purchased the Elawa Farm site from
Open Lands with the intention of restoring the property
for use as a neighborhood park and an education center.
The preservation of the open space and historic
buildings was the result of public-private collaboration
involving The City of Lake Forest, Lake Forest Open
Lands Association, and the Lake County Forest Preserve
District, as well as generous donations from the Lake
Forest Preservation Foundation and caring residents.
In 1999, Elawa Farm was designated a project of the
“Save America’s Treasures” Program, a public-private
partnership between the White House Millennium Council
and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. This
designation was an important step in efforts to restore
and preserve the natural splendor and historical
significance this historic farm.
The first tenant of this unique property was the very
successful “Wildlife Discovery Program” of Lake Forest’s
Parks and Recreation Department. Other organizations
involved at Elawa Farm on an
on-going basis include the
Lake Forest Garden Club and School Districts 67 and 115.
Early History
The gentleman farm was popular in both the nineteenth
and twentieth centuries. Known as hobby farms, because
the farm operation rarely supported the house, they were
built for the owners to enjoy the pleasures of the land
and outdoor pursuits.
Elawa Farm was built in 1917 by the A. Watson Armour
family as a weekend home and gentleman farm. David Adler
designed a series of buildings for the Armours, and
Alfred Hopkins designed the farm complex. Hopkins was a
leading designer of gentleman farms, while David Adler
was a highly recognized designer of summer homes and
residences. The architectural style of the farm building
is Georgian Colonial Revival.
The original farm was 128 acres and included the
gatehouses, superintendent’s house, wagon shed, stable,
chicken coop, root cellar, two greenhouses, icehouse,
potting shed, silo and numerous outbuildings. The land
east of the farm complex was originally a 53,000 square
foot formal garden. The garden included flowers,
ornamental plantings and vegetables, as well as a fruit
orchard.
Elawa Environment
With Lake Michigan as Lake Forest’s eastern boundary,
the Middlefork Savanna anchored by the Elawa Farm
complex provides an exceptional western boundary for the
northern half of Lake Forest. Located west of Waukegan
Road, Elawa Farm is one of the last remaining gentleman
farms in the Midwest. With 4 ½ miles of trails starting
at Elawa Farm, visitors can hike, bike and cross-country
ski through the Middlefork Savanna with over 570 acres
of open prairie from Rt. 176 on the north and to Rt. 60
on the south. The Nature Conservancy has described the
Middlefork Savanna as “one of the finest examples of a
black soil, tallgrass prairie in the United States.”
Home to a rare tallgrass savanna, Middlefork Savanna
features a mix of oak savanna and woodlands, wet and
mesic prairies, sedge meadows and marshes. Middlefork
provides valuable protection for state and federally
listed species such as the Blanding’s turtle. A 25-acre
parcel here is considered the highest quality tallgrass
savanna of its kind in the nation and recognized as a
globally threatened ecosystem.
Wildlife Discovery Center
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm provides
programs geared for people of all ages who have an
interest in wildlife and its habitat. Education,
recreation and responsible stewardship through real life
experiences are the primary focus of this program. Over
150 species, comprising of reptiles, amphibians and
raptors, can be viewed at the Center. There is no fee
for the main exhibit which features crocodilians, giant
snakes and lizards, the Gila monster, the Alligator
Snapping turtle and a number of native reptiles.
Visitors to the Center can see one of the nation’s
largest public rattlesnake and venomous reptile exhibits
called “The Grass Is Rattling” and view a number of
birds of prey, including a Red Tail hawk, Harris hawk,
Screech owl and a Great Horned owl.
Programs and school field trips offered through the
Center focus on wildlife education, field
biology/ecology study programs and trips, self-guided
nature hikes, wildlife ecology trips, family and special
events, workshops, summer camps and volunteer
opportunities. For information on the program or exhibit
hours, visit the Wildlife
Discovery or email
carmichr@cityoflakeforest.com.
Use of Elawa Facilities
Newly renovated spaces available for public use include
several conference and classroom spaces, a kitchen
learning center and garden and art workshop areas. Elawa
Farm tenants and Lake Forest organizations whose purpose
focuses on education, recreation, gardening, and public
park services have the first opportunity to reserve
available space. All other requests are accepted on a
first-come, first-serve-basis. Application forms to
reserve space are available at the Lake Forest City Hall
(220 E. Deerpath) during regular business hours.
The Elawa Farm facilities are available for
activities and events seven days per week from 8 a.m.
until 11 p.m. Alcohol consumption is allowed only by
permit in this smoke-free facility. Depending on the
type of function, the City may require the user to
provide proof of insurance or impose other requirements
if it is determined to be in the best interest of the
health, safety and welfare of the City.
If you need additional information, please call
Shelley Walker in the Office of the City Manager at
847-615-4291. To reserve the shelter at Elawa Farm Park,
please contact the Recreation Department, located at 400
Hastings Road, at 847-234-6700. A
facility use
application
(50k - 5 pages) form can
also be downloaded here.
The Garden at Elawa Farm
The mission of the Garden at Elawa Farm is to complete
and preserve the interpretive restoration of the
original garden, commissioned by A. Watson Armour, circa
1918. The 2.2 acre garden will resemble the original
garden in design as closely as practical by
re-establishing the allee, the hedges, the cutting
gardens, fruit tree stands and vegetable beds in similar
configurations.
The garden will be an organic community garden
maintained by volunteers who select, plant and harvest
the crops to be grown each season. It is open to the
public for viewing and available to the community for
educational purposes. Produce harvested from the garden
and products made thereof will be available for sale at
an open-air market at the farm. Proceeds will be used to
support garden operations.
From May 1st through Thanksgiving the garden is in
operation with volunteers working Tuesdays-Saturdays.
The garden can be visited year round to stroll and
enjoy, to photograph or paint. We invite you to take a
seat on the topmost tier to view the expanse of the
Middlefork Savanna and the adjoining Open Lands
preserve. We trust that visitors will stay on the paths
and refrain from picking produce unless given permission
to do so.
Preserving Elawa for the
Future
In April 2002 the Mayor of Lake Forest appointed the
Elawa Farm Commission to preserve, restore and develop
this nationally recognized historic farm grouping to
create a multipurpose, multi-use public complex. To fund
and guide the restoration project, a not-for-profit
foundation was developed to raise funds to restore and
endow the facilities. A Campaign for Elawa Farm was then
launched to restore the property and create a lasting
community institution. Thanks to the generosity of our
community, funds are being raised to build an endowment
and re-establish the historic gardens.
Contact Information
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